Press Release: Aerovance Closes Second Tranche of $60 Million Series C Financing

Aerovance Closes Second Tranche of $60 Million Series C Financing BERKELEY, Calif., March 27 -- Aerovance, Inc. today announced it has closed the $32 million second tranche of its $60 million Series C financing. The $28 million first tranche of the financing closed in May 2006. "While we are pursuing a strategic partnership for Aerovant(TM), our novel asthma drug targeting the root cause of the disease, the second tranche will allow us to fully fund the program through a Phase IIb clinical trial, which is scheduled to commence later this year," said Mark Perry, Aerovance's president and chief executive officer. "With the Phase IIa data for our cystic fibrosis drug, Aerolytic(TM), anticipated this summer, our pipeline is strong, enabling us to continue to build the long term value of Aerovance." The company's investors include Apax Partners, Clarus Ventures, Alta Partners, Lehman Brothers, NGN Capital and Burrill & Co. Aerovant(TM) is a recombinant human IL-4 variant that is a potent inhibitor of both the IL-4 and IL-13 receptors. It blocks Th2 allergic inflammation, and it is in development to treat patients with uncontrolled asthma. Aerolytic(TM) is a novel serine protease inhibitor in development for the treatment of cystic fibrosis. It targets the most upstream defect in the pathology of the lung disease by blocking prostasin. Aerovance acquired the worldwide rights to both drug candidates when the company was formed as a spin-out of Bayer Pharmaceuticals Corp. in 2004. Aerovance is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of clinical-stage products for respiratory and allergic diseases. The company's goal is to build an integrated company, with acknowledged expertise in leveraging operational partnerships that include the discovery, development and commercialization of novel molecules. Aerovance currently has molecules in development for the treatment of uncontrolled asthma, cystic fibrosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and uncontrolled eczema. For more information, visit http://www.aerovance.com. Contact: Tracey Milani or David Schull Noonan Russo 858-546-4811 [email protected] [email protected]